Ajinkya Rahane’s scintillating form in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024-25 came to a disappointing end in the semi-final against Baroda on December 13 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Despite a fiery innings, Rahane narrowly missed out on a century, leaving his team to finish just short of what could have been a perfect individual performance.
Rahane, who had been in exceptional form throughout the tournament, continued his fine run in the semi-final. His class with the bat was on full display as he played a series of elegant shots, steering Mumbai closer to the 159-run target with ease. His powerful half-century was just a glimpse of the dominance he showed throughout his knock.
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As he neared his century, it looked like he would guide Mumbai into the final in style. With Mumbai in a comfortable position, Suryakumar Yadav at the other end played three dot balls to allow Rahane a chance to reach his hundred.
Great sportive spirit❤️ from #surya.
He played 3 dot balls for Rahane’s 100. But unfortunately he missed his century. pic.twitter.com/HVh1WA5IPm— …… (@way_2_create) December 13, 2024
However, fate had other plans. Rahane, perhaps eager to reach his milestone, got out on 98, just two runs shy of a deserved century. Abhimanyu Singh was the bowler who ended Rahane’s innings with a fuller delivery that angled into him. Rahane, attempting a flick, ended up edging the ball to the keeper, who made no mistake in taking the catch.
— Sunil Gavaskar (@gavaskar_theman) December 13, 2024
Despite the early exit, Ajinkya Rahane’s innings of 98 runs from 56 balls was a brilliant display of batting. His knock included 11 boundaries and 5 sixes, pushing his strike rate to an impressive 175. This performance added to his stellar record in the tournament, where he has amassed 334 runs in seven matches at an average of over 55. Rahane’s contribution was key in keeping Mumbai on track for the win, even as his innings came to an unfortunate close.
